Chapter Eleven
"Wh-what?" Adara stuttered, it had been a long day. She was exhausted and stressed and deliriously hungry. There had to be a reasonable explanation as to why an elf would call her "Lady Adara" and say that she's returned, like hallucinations.
Those aren't that uncommon actually and with the strange things she's eaten recently, it wouldn't surprise her.
The elf recovered slightly and handed Aragorn the stuff in his hands and was about to speak when a butterfly came in through a window and landed on his shoulder near his ear.
After a few seconds the butterfly flew off and the elf straightened.
"My name is Haldir and I have been asked to bring you to the Lord and Lady." Adara looked at him stunned.
Galadriel and Celeborn wanted to speak with her? How did they even know she was here? She noticed everybody looking at her and she shook herself.
"Oh right, um, alright then. Lead the way." she said and followed after Haldir. Not noticing that she climbed down the tree like Haldir instead of taking the ladder.
Adara was no longer tired, but instead wide awake. Her palms were starting to sweat and her heart was racing. Galadriel and Celeborn requested her!
She had assumed that she would be meeting them with the rest of the Company but apparently not. She still wanted to know how they knew about her.
They didn't know about Gandalf until the Company told them so how did they know about her? It made no sense, she didn't come until after the counsel with Elrond so he couldn't have told her.
They had encountered no other elves as of yet and she honestly doubted that orcs would bring them news.
Adara noticed that Haldir kept looking at her and she was starting to get unnerved by it. It wasn't normal staring like he was trying to figure out who she was, it was like the kind of staring where he knew exactly who she was but couldn't wrap his head around it.
Yeah, it was unnerving.
Adara looked up when she heard someone clear their throat. She noticed that she was already in front of Galadriel and Celeborn and that Haldir had cleared his throat.
"Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel." he said and bowed. Galadriel smiled at the elf.
"Thank you Haldir, you may go back to your post." Galadriel informed him and he bowed again and with one last glance at Adara, he left.
Adara suddenly felt really nervous all of a sudden. Having all the attention on her from two incredibly powerful beings was really nerve wracking.
"Um, hi?" Adara tried, her voice going higher than normal. She cleared her throat and shifted on her feet.
This was a lot more awkward than she expected. Galadriel and Celeborn weren't saying anything, instead they just looked at her like she was a treasure that they had lost and finally got back.
What was it with the people in Lothlorien staring at her?
Finally, Galariel spoke, "Hello Adara. It is so good to see you again."
Adara looked at her in shock, "Again? What do you mean?" she asked, her heart started thumping louder.
Her forehead was starting to sweat now and there were shots of anxiety shooting through her body.
Celeborn spoke up, "Adara, why don't you come and sit with us." he suggested.
Adara noticed that there was a silver cushion on a metal frame with flower designs. It was sitting next to where Galadriel and Celeborn were sitting.
She took a deep breath and shakily walked up the steps to them and sat down.
Suddenly she was keenly aware of her appearance. Her red hair was so matted that you couldn't even tell that she still had it in a pony tail. She had dirt and mud smeared everywhere on her and you don't even want to know what she smelled like.
"Adara I want you to tell me what you remember from your time here."
Adara looked at her strangely, "What do you mean?"
"I know it isn't a lot, but I know that you have been getting flashbacks, I would like to know what you see in them." Galadriel told her.
Flashbacks? THAT was what those visions were? But how? She had never been here before!
Celeborn could sense what she was thinking and put a hand on hers.
"Let us explain. Your name is not Adara Mestil, it is Lady Adara of Lothlorien." Celeborn paused to let the information sink in before continuing.
"You are our daughter, you are a noble elf." Adara's mind was going so many different directions.
Her parents weren't low life humans who abandoned her, they were the king and queen of Lothlorien.
"But then why was I on Earth and not here?" she asked, but didn't know if she would like the answer or not.
Galadriel's eyes teared up. "It was during the War of the Elves and Sauron. You were fighting gallantly with your betrothed-"
"Woah woah wait! Betrothed?!" Adara yelled, looking at the elves in shock. Maybe that was who she had seen die in her first flashback.
Galadriel nodded, "Yes, his name was Clodoveo. He was one of Elrond's soldiers. You loved him so much. He perished in the battle and you grieved deeply. You were starting to fade and we were so scared we would lose you forever. On the night that you would fade completely, the Valar came to us and said that your destiny had not been fulfilled. They said that were was sending you somewhere you could live until you were needed and that they were binding you to the Earth, that you had faded so much that you had to be a man, you could no longer be an elf. And that in order to go to that place you weren't allowed to have your memories anymore. We didn't get to choose, they just told us what was going to and left us with a spell to use to call you back. They said we would know when to use it."
Adara was speechless, there were tears streaming down her face and she sucked in a shuddery breath. She had no idea what to say, she had no idea what to feel.
"Adara-" Adara jerked back as Celeborn tried to touch her cheek. She stood up so fast that the cushion fell over.
"I-I don-I just- I'm sorry." Adara stuttered as she backed up and fled the clearing.
She ran through the forest, letting her feet take her where they wanted to. She ended up in another clearing with a gazebo made of white and blue flowers.
She collapsed on a stone bench and leaned forward so that her face was in between her knees and she wept.
She wept for the love she didn't remember, she wept for the family she once had, she wept for the life she didn't remember living, and she wept for the life she didn't really live.
Adara knew she should be happy, she had parents who loved her, who didn't abandon her. She had a family! She should be ecstatic.
But the only thing she felt was a hollow emptiness. She cried so hard that she started dry heaving, there wasn't enough food in her body to create bile.
"Adara?" Adara jerked her head up to see Aragorn standing in the moonlight. He was rubbing sleep out of his eyes, but her looked concerned.
"What is it? What happened?" he asked, coming to sit next to her.
She looked at him and started talking. She told him of her life on Earth, how the orphanage she grew up in was so big that there wasn't enough money to really have a life. How she never got adopted even once because she was so quiet as a kid nobody wanted her and she was so rebellious as a teenager nobody cared about her.
She told him how she lived alone with no friends in a college where no one knew she existed. She told him how she always dreamed of one day meeting her parents and they all lived happily ever after and she told him what Galadriel told her. How she was their daughter and an ex-elf because the Eldar race was taken from her because she had to fulfill her destiny.
By the time she was done, she was crying again, this time in Aragorn's shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Adara. I'm so sorry." he was murmuring to her as he stroked her hair.
No telling how long later, Adara sat up. Eyes red and puffy from crying and nose so stopped up she could barely breathe.
She stood up and walked over to the edge of the gazebo and looked out into the forest. She felt Aragorn settle beside her.
"This used to be my home, I used to walk these woods." Adara whispered. She felt a warm arm settle around her shoulders and she leaned into it.
She looked up to say something, but stopped short when she saw the look in Aragorn's eyes.
He started leaning down and she couldn't stop herself from tilting her head up. She closed her eyes at the first touch and stood on her tip toes to tangle her hands in Aragorn's hair and to deepen the kiss.
The kiss was slow, with a current of need and desperation in it. It was passionate and painful and Adara had to wrench her head back when it became too much.
She took a step back and touched her fingers to her lips, trying to catch her breath. Aragorn didn't look much better than she felt.
"Adara-" he started, but she quickly cut him off.
"No, we can't. I mean, what about Arwen I-"
"Arwen? Who's that?" It was Aragorn's turn to cut her off.
She looked at him like he was crazy.
"Arwen. Elrond's only daughter. Your betrothed. She has black hair and blue eyes and you have this epic romance wher-" she was cut off by Aragorn grabbing her face and kissing her again.
She gasped into his mouth and gripped the arms that were holding her in place. The kiss gradually slowed down and Aragorn pulled back enough to press his forehead against hers.
"I don't have a betrothed. Elrond doesn't have a daughter, I don't know why your books say that I do but I don't. I promise you, I don't." he whispered to her.
Adara looked into his blue eyes and drowned in them again. She felt like crying but no tears would come.
She pulled back from Aragorn and nodded, "I believe you. But I don't think I can do this right now. I just had a huge bombshell dropped on me and another right after it. I feel something for you Agargorn, I won't lie. But please give me some time to think and to get myself together again before we start anything."
Aragorn looked so sad that she almost took it back but she knew she had to this.
No matter how much she wanted something more with the ranger in front of her, she knew that right now she would not benefit from a relationship.
Neither would Aragorn for that matter, she wouldn't be much of a partner right now and he deserved better. They both knew that.
Aragorn cleared his throat, "I understand. Take all the time you need, Adara. We have a long day tomorrow, we should go to sleep."
Adara nodded in agreement and they walked back to the tartan in silence.
Authors Note: Okay so emotional chapter for Adara! Did anyone see that coming? I wanted to kind of establish a relationship between Aragorn and Adara but I think it's moving a little fast so they haven't actually gotten together yet but don't worry, that is in my plans for the future chapters. Adara now knows that Arwen doesn't exist! Okay, anyways, hope you enjoy! See you next Sunday!
